Since November, Canada has tightened regulations allowing international students to stay and work.

International students at the University of British Columbia (Canada)

PHOTO: UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA

The chance of staying in Canada is more difficult

The information was announced by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) on October 4, related to the Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP). Specifically, from November, applicants for PGWP must have an additional English or French certificate according to the Canadian Language Framework (CBL), at level 7 for university students and level 5 for college students.

Language certificates accepted by IRCC are CELPIP (General), IELTS (General Training), PTE (Core), TEF Canada, TCF Canada. The above test results must be less than 2 years old at the time of application.

Another change is related to the applicant’s study program. Accordingly, applicants who study at the undergraduate, master’s and doctoral levels can still apply for PGWP as usual. Applicants who study at the college or other university programs must graduate from occupations with long-term labor shortages if they want to work in Canada, with a duration equivalent to the level of the training program.

In total, there are 966 training programs approved by IRCC for PGWP applications, divided into five major groups: agriculture and agri-food; healthcare; STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics); trades; transportation. Those who applied for PGWP before November 1 will not be affected by the above changes, IRCC emphasized.

On LinkedIn, Saurabh Malhotra, CEO of Student Direct, said schools are now struggling to find the right majors to help graduates qualify for PGWPs. Other experts have said that some important majors are missing from the new list, such as hospitality, according to Karen Dancy, director of admissions at Olds College of Agriculture and Technology.

Ms. Dancy also warned that Canada's new approach only works at a national scale and ignores local needs. "This will cause a disaster for localities, especially remote areas that need workers trained from colleges," the female director shared. Experts also recommended that Canada consider some other important industries that are being overlooked so that students, schools and the economy all benefit.

Continuously tightening regulations

In September, Canada also announced a reduction in its study permit quota, issuing only 437,000 in 2025, 10% less than the level announced a few months ago. The restriction will apply to both master's and doctoral degrees, instead of just undergraduates as before, and this group will be given priority for 12% of the quota. This means that this group will have to have a provincial or territorial endorsement letter (PAL) in their study permit application from 2025.

Canada's Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Marc Miller announces new measures to cut international students in 2025-2026

In addition, IRCC has tightened regulations related to accompanying relatives, only granting work permits to people with spouses studying master's degrees in programs lasting at least 16 months. "We are taking a number of measures to strengthen temporary residence programs and implement a more comprehensive immigration plan," said Mr. Marc Miller, Minister of IRCC.

The changes are the latest in a series of measures Canada has taken over the past year to maintain the integrity of its international student system. Previously, the financial proof requirement for a study permit was doubled from CAD 10,000 (VND 180,347,700) to CAD 20,635 (VND 371,019,360). The government also warned schools to only offer admission if they could arrange accommodation for international students and announced other tightening regulations.

Previously, according to a report from ApplyBoard (Canada), the cutback policy has affected the "Canadian dream" of many international students. This unit cited data from IRCC in the first quarter of 2024 to show that the number of study permits issued from January to April was 76,307, with an approval rate of 50%. This rate is 8% lower than the average of 2023 and 4% lower than 2022.

According to a report from IRCC, Canada attracted more than 1 million international students to study in 2023. IRCC statistics also show that the number of Vietnamese students in Canada has been on a continuous downward trend, from 21,480 in 2019 to only 16,140 in 2022. However, in 2023, the number of Vietnamese students in Canada increased slightly, to 17,175 and ranked 8th in terms of number.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/tu-thang-11-canada-siet-quy-dinh-cho-phep-du-hoc-sinh-o-lai-lam-viec-185241011114939061.htm